Mother’s Day is a celebration honoring the mother of the family, as well as motherhood, maternal bonds, and the influence of mothers. In honor of moms everywhere, the May Challenge featured:

Lessons from mom

The stories below contain learnings, laughter, and a bit of sweet sorrow. There were no honorable mentions this week as we felt each story had it’s own valuable lesson. Enjoy. Learn. And, listen to mom.

I screamed at Mother as she screamed at me. As usual, our entire neighbourhood hid into their pencil cases while they peeked at us through the zips. It wasn’t easy having a stapler for a mother. Especially when you’re a sticky notepad.

“Listen, kid. What you did back there was really out of line!”

“No it wasn’t, Mother! Why can’t you just trust me?”

“Your sticky notes are gonna fall off Ms. Paper in about a day. You should’ve let me staple you!”

“She asked for my help. I can do it myself, I’m super sticky.”

“But my staples can make your notes stay for longer!”

I ended it there with a huff before trudging off into my pencil case. Eraser gave me an apologetic look as I lay flat in the corner…

It was pitch black. I felt something soft, like a whisper of air, brush my hand. I went rigid. The summer night air was heavy. I could hear the steady breathing of my family who, like me, bedded down in the courtyard when it grew too hot to sleep indoors. I felt it again and opened my eyes. I relaxed, relieved. It was the tiny white kitten who had adopted me just days before…

Elspeth has a homework assignment. The teacher’s instructions are simple: Write a thank you letter. That’s it! A thank you letter. No more, no less. Elspeth has sat here now for over two hours trying to think of what to write. She has made a list of possible thank you letters, but none inspire her one little bit. Just looking at the list makes Elspeth feel sad. Sadder!

Here’s her list:

Thanks for Christmas/Birthday presents. Boring!

Thanks to God. Stacey Spence doing this one!

Thanks to teacher. Nearly everyone else doing this!

Thanks for being a friend. Haven’t been much of a friend lately, have I?

Elspeth pauses, chews the end of her pencil, grimaces as the taste of lead enters her mouth, and writes …

The dancing green and blue lights weaving in the clear night sky. Those lights and the stars were the only things were my only light source at the moment. I couldn’t sleep, so I was sitting at my desk. And sitting right in front me on the desk was why I couldn’t rest— a neatly stacked pile of letters.

The letters were all from who other than my stepmother? She sends one every month since we lived over nine thousand miles away from each other. Receiving those letters were one of the only things I looked forward to. I’d rush home every day from wherever I was photographing just to check my mail to see if another had arrived…

My Mom told me to be bold. To stand my ground. To not care about what other people say.

But isn’t that what got me in this mess anyway? Her words? Those exact words?

I wore what I felt like wearing. I said what I felt like saying. I did what I felt like doing. And yet, Britney and her friends still made fun of me. They gave no mercy. Had no mercy. They bullied me until I couldn’t take it anymore, until that last bell rung.

And from then, I ran home and cried.

My Mom rubbed my back and said, “there, there, Natalie. Not everybody is nice. Honestly, there are a lot of jerks in the world. Britney may just be one of them.”

The granite counter is covered in flour. Powdery and white, it resembles the snow that is falling outside.

I yelp as some tumbles onto the floor, but my mom is right there with a damp paper towel.

“Just keep going. You’re doing great,” she encourages. I dip my hands into the flour once more and rub it up and down the old wooden rolling pin. I stare at the dough in front of me. It is thick and grainy, but it holds the promise of being perfect. I start to lower the rolling pin…

Everyday at school I get bullied. By my friends Carrie, Andy, and Kate. But before it wasn’t like that. Before we were friends. All of us, joined together. Then slowly, Carrie became meaner and meaner. Then she affected Andy and Kate too. Now, whenever I hang out with them, it’s ugly.

“Courtney! Come and get your food!” yells Mom from downstairs.

“Coming!” I yell back, frantically trying to pull up my socks. I run down the stairs then hop down the last step. Quickly glancing at the clock , I stuff the chocolate pancake in my mouth and grabbing a few more, I yell “Bye Mom!

Without waiting for her to respond, I was gone. I jump on my bicycle and pedal as hard as I can.

A few minutes later, I run up the stairs of school. I wrap my fingers around the silver handle. I inhale deeply, then turn the handle. The sound of slamming lockers, thumping of feet, and talking of kids filled my ears. I look to see if any of my so called friends are there then run towards my locker. I pull out my homework for Math class and grab a few pencils and pens.

I slam My locker shut, then hear an unwanted voice. “Hey, gimme a pen. Mine ran out of ink.” I swing my head then see a girl with hair dyed blue hair and eyes that seem like black pearls..

As always, congratulations to everyone who was featured this month! Stay tuned for the June Challenge!

Join Storybird for free!

Read, write, discover, and share original stories and poetry.

Sign into Storybird

Loading Google Sign In…

(Ad blocking software may be blocking Google Sign In)

or sign in with email below

Summary:

Mother's Day is a celebration honoring the mother of the family, as well as motherhood, maternal bonds, and the influence of mothers. In honor of moms everywhere, the May Challenge featured: Lessons from Mom